A reinvigorated, near-perfect Union

Everything's coming up roses for Ethan Stowell.

Within the past year and a half, the 34-year-old owner and executive chef of Union not only got married, he also launched two much-lauded restaurants, made the James Beard Foundation's short list of finalists for "Best Chef Northwest" and has been tapped as one of the country's best new chefs by Food & Wine Magazine. Can "Iron Chef" be far behind?

Stowell was just 29 when he opened Union in 2003, but he cooked with confidence and finesse from the start. His contemporary-American menu evolved almost daily, prompted by what he found in the markets. Portions were so restrained some complained that while you ate well in this serenely modern dining room, you could still leave hungry, even after a five-course tasting menu.

After Union catapulted him into the front ranks of Seattle chefs, Stowell switched gears and, in concert with business partner Patric Gabre-Kidan, he opened Tavolata and How to Cook a Wolf. No one leaves Tavolata hungry, not after sharing bowls of fresh pasta and other Italian-inspired fare served family-style at a long, loud communal table; Wolf pares that rustic conceit even further.

Stowell's Italian divertissements have reinvigorated his downtown flagship. He introduced a new menu in January that is still market-driven, still changes daily, but now intelligently portioned, priced-right plates are even better designed for the kind of flexible dining that customers today crave.

Most important, the food, as refined and artful as ever, has an exciting new clarity and focus. Textures are fine-tuned; flavors are clear, true and balanced. From start to finish, nuance keeps bravado in check.

Consider six palm-sized Totten Virginica oysters heaped with Meyer lemon ice. Shocking the teeth with their tart, briny chill, they slip past the tongue on a slick of fine olive oil. Slices of palest coral geoduck, looking like rose petals in a grassy pool of cucumber nage, had their calm delightfully ruffled with the bite of horseradish and salty pearls of salmon roe.

Those appear among "appetizers, salads and soups," one of three menu categories from which to build your meal. A generous ramekin of chicken-liver mousse could be a meal in itself, given its accouterments: wafer-thin walnut toasts, vinaigrette-dressed arugula and cippolini marinated in sweet-tart agrodolce. The terrine, as smooth as pot de crème, just about melts in your mouth, along with its dark brown layer of aspic, rich with stock made from squab.

Beet salads are everywhere, but here the attention is squarely on marinated slices of chioggia beets, meticulously arranged like petals on a chrysanthemum. They surround a dollop of avocado mousse and are dressed for spring with chopped mint, toasted pistachio nuts and pickled rhubarb.

Spring also brings asparagus, fava beans and nettles to the table.

A pert parsley-and-caper vinaigrette moistened crisp-tender asparagus spears arranged opposite salty rashers of duck prosciutto. Half a soft-boiled egg nearly upstages both.

Asparagus tips and spring garlic give a lift to farotto enriched with beef tongue. Cooked like risotto but made with the chewy wheat grain farro, it's one of several dazzling options in the pasta column.

Several were showstoppers. Fava beans and shards of reggiano nestled among rabbit-filled ravioli in a light broth spiked with the sweet tang of saba (reduced grape must). Nettles made a soft bed for pillows of gnocchi in a light crème fraîche sauce flecked with bacon. Two whole gleaming sardines lay crisscrossed beneath orecchiette, little pasta ears swathed in a lusty tomato, olive and caper sauce, an elegant re-imagining of the Sicilian classic, pasta con sarde.

Lamb sausage, too, was vividly seasoned and its peppery jus seeped into soft, white Tuscan controne beans and bitter broccoli rabe. You'll find it among "meat, fish and game," along with a cylindrical rabbit loin, elegantly wrapped in its own crisp skin and moistened with a salty, mustard-sharpened jus.

Oil-poached kampachi was as soft as sashimi, its subtle flavor a counterpoint to tiny white radishes, tender cauliflower buds and an emerald broth distilled from ramps. Barracuda gets a mere dab of creamy Meyer lemon emulsion, but its intensity is breathtaking against the crisp oily skin of the firm white fish. In a nifty retelling of the surf-and-turf tale, the fish is paired with an earthy trio: Hen of the Woods mushrooms, spicy greens and sweet, roasted fennel.

Stowell is quick to credit 30-year-old chef de cuisine Tyler Moritz for the day-to-day consistency of Union's kitchen. The front of the house, too, is ripe with talent. Waiters are almost telepathic in their ability to know what's needed and when. They pace a meal properly even when customers order erratically. Their wine savvy and service do justice to an impressive list. They can even counsel on the various cheeses — a must to end your meal.

What keeps Union short of a perfect score? A dining room that is still too stiff despite crimson walls, candlelight, flowers and even the new banquette. A sprawling floor plan saps its energy and large windows expose a dreary streetscape. But Stowell is fast becoming such a seasoned restaurateur, no doubt in time he'll get the setting right, too.

Providence Cicero: providencecicero@aol.com

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